Fish Finder -- Published June 11, 2014

Wednesday

Jun 11, 2014 at 12:01 AM

Delta

Peter Ottesen

Light fishing pressure is replaced mostly by recreational boaters, jet skiers and water skiers. Anchoring with bait such as shad or pile worms will turn the occasional striped bass to 7 pounds, mostly on the San Joaquin River side. Trollers seem to prefer the Sacramento River, especially west of the Old Dairy.

Locate a school of downstream salmon smolts and toss minnow imitations for surprisingly good striper action.

American shad continue to pile through the waterways and up the Sacramento River. At Freeport, fishing is very good with darts and lead heads on the outgoing tide. Boaters report 25-shad limits for most sessions, with fish going 1 to 4 pounds, with more females showing, loaded with roe.

Ocean - Salmon fishing is up and down for Bodega Bay and San Francisco Bay charters that sack seven to 20 fish in a day. Salmon are quality sized, 12 to 24 pounds, but the average is far less than one per rod on most voyages. The bite is even slower out of Half Moon Bay and almost nonexistent in Monterey Bay. There's no end to bait - squid, short-bellied rock cod and krill - but the salmon are scattered. Most harbors report good to excellent rock cod fishing for mixed cod and bass, with a solid showing of lingcod.

San Francisco Bay - On the faster tides, striped bass fishing is good on the rock piles with fish running 5 to 16 pounds. On slower tides, halibut take center stage. Drifting live shiner minnows or anchovies is the ticket. It's the best summer fishing season inside the bay in years. As an alternative, dunking bait for leopard shark also is solid.

American - Shad are thick and spread the entire length from the mouth at Discovery Park to Nimbus Basin. Morning and evening is best, especially as the summer heat arrives. It's a perfect time to hire a half-day guide to fish from 4 p.m. to dark and enjoy a nonstop shad bite.

Feather - Low water stymies both shad and striped bass fishing, according to Johnson's Tackle in Yuba City. Call ahead.

Sacramento - Good shad fishing at Freeport, Miller Park and Discovery Park at Sacramento and farther upriver to Verona and Los Molinos. Angling for wild rainbows is good from Redding to Red Bluff, where cool, stable flows are in the 50s.

Alpine - Here and at nearby Spicer Reservoir, a major hatch of large, black flying ants has kept trout full and unwilling to bite. Alpine is brim full and in need of a major plant. Spicer is low and tricky to launch a boat. Angling in Hobart Creek, a major tributary adjacent to the campground, is closed to fishing until July 1.

Amador - It's catfish and bluegill time by day, and trout by night under submersible lights and off the lighted docks.

Camanche - Trout to 2 pounds get after single minnow imitating lures from Hat Island to the dam, down about 35 feet. Channel catfish, 3 to 7 pounds, bite near Lancha Plana Bridge. The lake is 36 percent full and dropping.

Caples - Same story for both Twin Lakes, Caples and Silver, off Highway 88. Water is cold and trout fishing is spotty, at best. A better choice is Bear River Reservoir, found east of Pioneer.

Hogan - Striped bass usually begin feeding quite close to the shore during the heat of summer, and are very susceptible to jigs, Kastmasters and live bait. The typical striper weighs 1 to 3 pounds, occasionally to 7.

Los Vaqueros - Windy and hot conditions keep boat rentals to a minimum, but shoreline anglers can do well on recently planted trout and striped bass. The water is cool, still in the 60s, so fish continue to be reachable. Try floating baits for trout, cut bait for stripers. Pumping has ceased, so expect the 131,000-acre impoundment to slowly drop and warm.

New Melones - Very good kokanee fishing, 32 to 42 feet deep. Uncle Larry's spinners do well, especially in pinks and red with copper or bronze. Kokes are fat, but not too long, measuring 11 to 13 inches. Many trollers score limits. Occasional trout measure 16 inches. Channel catfish are a good option for boats on the anchor with cut bait and an open bail. The lake is 33 percent full.

Pardee - Recently stocked with 2,000 pounds of trout, but bank fishing remains quiet in the Recreation Area. Most of the focus is on kokanee, 10 to 12 inches, that attack spinners and hoochies about 30 feet deep in the early morning. Limits are the rule. The lake level is 20 feet below spill.